


Ketchup or Mustard?

by Cookiemonster2000



Series: Frans One-Shots [4]
Category: Underfell - Fandom, Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Timelines, Alternate Universes, Casual Flirting, F/M, Happy Ending for Everyone, Hilarity Ensues, Loneliness, Mutual Pining, Soul Resonance, Soulmates, just trust me on this ok - Freeform, major confusion, sans is jealous of himself
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-06
Updated: 2018-08-18
Packaged: 2019-03-01 04:55:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 10,004
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13287435
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cookiemonster2000/pseuds/Cookiemonster2000
Summary: Sans has had a crush on Frisk for a while now.Well, maybe "crush" is the wrong word.And "a while" is an understatement.But he can't bring himself to tell her about the SOUL resonance that occurred between them years ago, back when they were both too young. Hasn't it been too long? Hasn't she gotten over him?However, he might regret his inaction when he accidentally summons an alternate version of himself who has no such bones about wooinghisSOULmate.





	1. Excuses, Excuses

**Author's Note:**

> Hoo boy! This work is inspired by a LOT of stuff I've seen around. The trope of Classic Sans vs Edgy Fell Sans has been a thing of mine for a while, and I'm doing an entire story on it.
> 
> It's gonna be kinda short, but if it gets a good enough response, I may plan some follow-up fics... ;)

He tapped the bar restlessly, his boney finger making a rapping sound on the wood. Grillby gave him a faceless look.

"it's fine. i'm fine." Sans realized he'd been scowling and reissued his signature wide grin. "see? everything's great."

How can _fire_ look skeptical?

"it's fine! she's gonna be here soon!" He stuck his hands in his pockets, trying to crush the anxiety welling up within him. 

_I just ... I just have a few things to tell Frisk before the world possibly ends._

_And it's my fault._

He slammed his skull down on the bar. "ugh."

The bird monster sitting on the other end of the bar chuckled. "Grillby wants to know if you need a drink."

Sans turned his head to glare at him. "i... no, i don't." he sighed. "my friend is late, that's all. i haven't seen her in..." He stopped. "last time I saw her, she was just starting to get really busy with the embassy last year. then..."

_Then, I stopped talking to her for the most part._

_Because I was scared of her. And what our relationship could turn into._

_Because I'm a coward and I've always been a coward._

"but not today!" he exclaimed out of nowhere. The bird monster jumped. 

"Ok, whatever you say, Sans," he said, chuckling. 

He felt a faint blush of embaressment dust his cheekbones. "whatever."

_But not today. Today, I am going to look Frisk in the eye and tell her what I fully realized when she broke the barrier and wasn't ready to tell her._

_That we're **SOULmates**._

The door swung open and the little bell rung. His head snapped back to see--yeah. It was Frisk. His SOUL skipped a beat.

Her long, auburn hair was bouncing behind her, and she was laughing about something. Her lavender stripe-less sweater, which she'd gotten for her seventeenth birthday to indicate her growing out of her childishness, was thick and somehow suited her thin frame by making her look delicate. She was wearing fur-lined walking boots, probably because of Snowdin's weather, and light-washed jeans.

As soon as she caught sight of him, her rust-colored eyes lit up, and she rushed forward, tackling him in a hug.

"Sans!! _Oh,_ I missed you so much!"

He moved his shaking arms up slightly to put them around her. She smelled like mocha with a slight hint of peppermint and she was hugging him, her warm little slender self pressed against his jacket. He shook his head rapidly, trying to clear his mind before she pulled away.

"yeah. you too, kid." 

She pulled back, smiling widely. "How have you been? Goodness, it's been forever, hasn't it? What with work and all?"

_It had been exactly seven months and ten days since he had seen her last. Since he'd been able to see her smile. Hear her laugh._

"yeah. forever."

She plopped down on the stool next to him. "We've got _so_ much to discuss. _I've_ got so much to tell you. But first!" She clapped her hands. "What _is_ this super important thing you had to tell me at the earliest convenience?"

He froze.

"super important thing?"

"Um... yeah? You said you wanted to tell me something, that you couldn't say over the phone. Remember?"

"super... important." 

She nodded, the corners of her mouth turned up slightly and an eyebrow raised flirtatiously. Every ounce of nerve he'd been saving fell out of his head. _Nope._

He shrugged. "i really am a **bone** -head, Frisk. it musta completely slipped my mind."

_Coward._

She laughed, but ... could he detect a hint of dissapointment on her face? annoyance? exasperation?

_But what's the point of telling her before you do it? If she accepts, two things could happen. The world could end, or it couldn't. If it does, why even bother telling her? If it doesn't... there's no way out, is there?_

_She's too perfect for you, anyway._

"i'll be right back, ok, Frisk?" He started to get off the stool. "grillb, get her the burg and fries. i'll be back in a minute."

She was _obviously_ exasperated now. "Sans, come on. I know there's something eating you. Just spit it out, ok?"

"when i get back. ten minutes." he remedied. "i'll be back in ten minutes."

He teleported to the basement.

 

The basement helf a strange-looking machine. It appeared to be broken, but looks can be decieving.

He'd been working on it for... well, he'd started right after Dad vanished when he was twelve. Then, at seventeen, he'd given up hope while Flowey was still in control of the timelines, and for the time that Frisk, then thirteen, was in the Underground. 

But once she'd broken the barrier... Well, he saw her SOUL during that Judgement. And he knew he didn't have anything to worry about, timeline-wise. He regained some HoPe--just enough. He continued work on the machine.

To bring Dad back.

And now, after nearly seven more years of work, he finally had fixed it up enough to hope to bring SOMETHING in.

He also had created a danger to the universe as they knew it. But what was science without a little risk, right?

Standing in front of the machine's control panel now, he heaved a sigh of disgust at himself. Not even able to tell a girl that he liked... that he _loved_ her, but able to fix an interdimensional portal. 

Pathetic.

But whatever universe this machine accessed, he hoped it would be the right one to access Dad in whatever limbo he was stuck in.

It _most likely_ wouldn't do any damage to their universe. Probably.

Shoving aside his fears, he pulled the lever he'd been afraid to pull until he'd told Frisk about everything--which he _still hadn't done. ___

__The machine shuddered and lit up. It shook violently as Sans walked towards it, almost in a trance._ _

__It was definitely doing _something.__ _

__The machine's door opened with a loud _bang_ and a puff of red smoke. Another skeleton stumbled out, coughing violently._ _

__But Sans knew instantly this wasn't his father. No, his dad was tall, and wore black and white, not a red, puffy jacket... a puffy jacket that looked almost identical--except in color--to...._ _

__Sans stared at Sans who dusted himself off and glared at him._ _

__"what the HELL did you do?" his edgy double demanded._ _


	2. The Instantaneous Birth of an Edgy Cousin

"you're me." he finally said.

"no shit." his other self responded sarcastically.

They stared one another down.

"you're me but edgy and a kid."

His double noticably bristled. "watch who you're callin' 'kid,' buddy--"

"that expression. is the expression of someone who's been through multiple resets and tons of drama and has given up. you're still stuck in the underground, aren't you?"

His edgy self's eyesockets widened. " _you're not?_ "

"we've been out for seven years." he turned and rubbed his temples. "not only did i access an alternate universe, but i accessed a totally different _point_ in their timeline?"

"what the hell are you even trying to do?" the other self demanded. "that machine... that looks like Dad's machine. why would you be messin' with--"

Sans whirled around, shocked. "you _aren't_??"

The other him huffed. "'course not. he was awful. we were glad to be rid of him. wouldn't wanna risk bringin' him back or nothin'."

Sans let out a huge breath. "what kind of timeline are you living in?"

The other him grinned, and he could see a sharp gold tooth portruding out of the side of his mouth. "not a good one, bucko. what? how's yours?"

"we were stuck in the underground until a human came and broke the barrier and freed us. now we're living peacefully on the surface."

"peace?" the other him shook his head. "ok, this needs to stop. i keep thinkin' of you as 'blue me' and that ain't gonna work in the long-term."

"long..... term?"

The other him gestured sarcastically towards the machine, which was still shuddering and spewing smoke. "unless you think that looks fit to send me back with?"

It looked awful, but...

"it's honestly seen worse," he replied. "i could send you back, but i need fuel."

"and you don't have any, do you."

"... it runs on determination. Only determination is gonna be able to rip timelines apart."

In saying this, he remembered in a flash that he wasn't dead. 

"welp. at least i didn't rip this universe apart, huh?"

The other him backed up a step. "well, mad scientist me, as i was saying before i was rudely interrupted, we gotta come up with a name for ya."

Sans chuckled. The insanity of the situation was hilarious. "ok. let's call you red."

The other him grunted. "why don't we just call _you_ blue?"

Sans leaned towards him, eyelights going out. "because this is my timeline. i'm the alpha."

Red snickered. "ya can't scare me, pal. you're me. i know we're all bark and no bite."

His eyes lit up again, and he laughed. "at least with no absorbed karma, we're not."

"so... how's your brother like? what was the human who broke the barrier like?"

_Frisk._

" _oh,_ dammit." He slapped himself on the forehead.

"what?" Red was alarmed at his counterpart's sudden mood swing.

"i left-- ok, first thing, we're going to grillby's, and you're gonna be my edgy younger cousin who i forgot i had to pick up, and come on, right now."

"what?" Red was even more alarmed. 

"come on!!"

He grabbed Red's jacket and teleported them both right outside the door to Grillby's. 

Sans shoved open the door. "hey, frisk, i'm so sorry i had to pop out like that, but i, uh, totally forgot i had this younger cousin--"

She was talking to Grillby, but when she heard his voice, she spun around on her stool and smiled, a bit ruefully.

"Oh, you're back. Ready to talk?"

He stumbled. "dunno what you're talking about, and i had to--"

Red pushed past him and grinned. "frisk, huh?"

She suddenly noticed the skeleton standing next to him. "Sans? Who's--"

"red." He sauntered up to the bar and leaned on it. "frisk, was it?"

She blinked. "Yeah. You're the guys' cousin?"

"the one and only." He stuck out a hand.

She smirked at it. "This seems awfully familiar."

He glanced back at his hand with mock horror. "Am I using somebody else's material?" 

Frisk snickered. "Try Sans."

"Damn! I gotta break out the big guns for _you_ , then, dollface." he said, hopping up on the stool next to hers.

She laughed.

_She laughed._

_There was a hint of blush on her cheeks._

"uh, hate to interrupt," Sans put in, clearly trying to interrupt, "but, uh..."

He had nothing to say. 

Frisk laughed. "C'mon, Sans."

Red grinned. "sit down, cuz. hey, I'll let you pay for my drink if i can buy the lady's."

She giggled. "Fine with me."

Sans, clearly put out, sat down on Red's other side. 

"You wanna hear something funny, Red?" Frisk asked, a hint of laughter in her voice.

He put his chin down on his hand, elbow on the table. "shoot."

"Sans called me and told me he had something _incredibly important_ to tell me as soon as possible. So I rushed all the way from the surface and met him here, not twenty minutes ago."

She paused for effect.

"And then, he kept making excuses why he couldn't tell me, and pretending he couldn't remember, and then he rushed off and brought back you so he wouldn't have to talk at all. What do you think of that?" 

"shameful way to treat a woman." He shook his head with disappointment. "thought I raised you better than that, cuz."

" _i'm older than you._ "

"ah, that's right." He grinned wider. "maybe she should dump you and go for me instead."

This had the intended affect. His eyelights went out and her face went red instantly.

"Oh, we're not-- we aren't..."

" **r e d...** "

"oh, excuse me." Red grinned. "so, ya got a human boyfriend, then?"

She went redder. "No."

"so..." he leaned a little closer to her. Sans had to physically restrain himself from yanking him back.

"...that mean you're available?"

She blinked. "Not really. I've been waiting for somebody."

"have you?"

"Y-yeah." She had the determined expression. "For a long time, actually."

"longer than you'd like?" he purred. "i bet i could show you a better time than--"

" **ok, red!** " Sans interrupted. "don't you want those drinks?"

Pointedly ignoring Frisk's even-more-flustered-but-a-bit-pleased expression, he reached over the counter and grabbed the ketchup bottle. "want some?"

"naw, i'd rather have..." Red, mirroring his action, reached over as well and pulled out the mustard. "some of this."

Frisk burst out laughing. "You guys sure you're not twins or something?"

They glanced at each other, tense. "why can't i--" Red began.

"because!" Sans grinned hugely and lifted up his bottle. "cheers!"

They clinked condiment bottles together and drank up, to Frisk's great amusement.

But they locked eyelights for a split second behind the bottles.

 _Oh, it is_ on.


	3. Excessive Use of Your Scary Voice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Frisk may or may not have ever been asked out. Specifically on a date, that is. Shame on you, Sans!!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I will freely admit that I'm working hard to complete this story quickly because of the overwhelmingly positive reaction y'all have given it. I'm even considering extending it to have more fun interactions just for you guys. <3 <3 <3
> 
> Enjoy your next chapter, ya freaks.

"I've gotta head out," Frisk groaned, glancing at the clock on the wall.

Sans sighed. "oh, well. guess I can give you a lift h-"

"i can teleport you back to the elevator if you want." Red jumped in.

She glanced at him, then back at Sans, then back at him. "Um, sure. Listen, guys, is there something--"

"nope."

"dunno what you're talkin' about."

"nothing's anything."

"we're great. everything's great."

She rolled her eyes. "I'm not sure how stupid you think I am, but fine. Let's go."

She stuck out her arm, smiling. Red took it and helped her off the stool.

"What a gentleman." she said sarcastically.

"anything for you, doll." he chuckled.

She smiled at him-- _that genuine, warm smile that she always saved for **him,**_ \--and turned back to Sans with a serious expression.

"Sans. What is this Saturday?"

His mind went blank. "what? what's saturday?"

She groaned. "Saturday is my twenty-first birthday party and if you miss it, I'm never going to speak to you again." Frisk tossed her head. "So, you better remember."

"'s family invited?" Red grinned up at Sans.

She laughed. "Just this once. You're welcome to come, Red."

"if he's not gone by then." Sans interrupted, put out. "we're not sure when he's gonna have to _go home_."

"i'll be here."

There was a split second where they stared at each other before Red teleported himself and Frisk away.

A moment later, Sans clunked his skull against the bar for the second time that day.

"i'll take that drink now, grillby."

 

"sure ya can make it home from here?" Red asked.

They were standing in front of the elevator to the exit. It had been built way back when the barrier had been broken, so that it was easier to visit the underground. She still couldn't understand why Sans insisted on moving back down here, in the darkness. 

Frisk shook herself out of her pondering and offered him a big smile. "Yup! There's a bus that goes up the mountain. If I set off now, I should be able to make the next one down."

She paused. Red was fidgeting.

"Honestly, you're as bad as Sans," she said honestly. "If you've got something to say, say it."

"wanna go to the movies tomorrow?"

She froze, her mouth hanging wide open. "What?"

"i'm asking you if you want to go to the movies with me tomorrow. we can get hot dogs afterwards. you seem pretty cool."

Despite his voice being devoid of flirtiness for the first time in the whole afternoon, she felt her face heating up. "...You want to ... hang out?"

"no." His face regained that grin. "i wanna go out on a date wit' ya." 

There was a pause. 

"I'm not... I mean," she stuttered, trying to voice her reasoning-- "I'm just--even if you are, like, completely--"

"not willing to take no for an answer? damn right."

She burst out laughing. "Ok, ok, you win. I've got the day off tomorrow anyway. Sans and Papyrus can give you directions to my house, and you can pick me up at four."

"why don't ya give me your number so we can plan this out in detail later? don't want ya to miss the bus." 

She slapped her forehead. "Shoot! The bus has to be arriving, like, now! I've gotta run!"

Jumping in the elevator, she waved wildly at him as the door shut. "Sans has my number! Just get it from him! See you tomorrow!"

Weakly, he waved back as the doors closed. He kept standing there, staring at his reflection in the silver-gray metal.

"see ya tomorrow."

 

He knocked on the door to the house-- _his_ house. But not really. 

It wasn't damaged enough, and the light emitting from the windows was warm instead of the neon white Boss demanded for "interrogation purposes." As if there was ever anyone to interrogate.

He stood on the step until the door swung open and Sans stuck his head out. His sockets widened.

"get in here!" he muttered, grabbing Red's jacket and yanking him inside.

As Sans slammed the door shut, Red dusted off his jacket. "keep your paws to yerself, pal, or you could lose 'em," he growled, but the mad scientist wasn't listening.

"look," he muttered darkly. "if you aren't more careful, somebody could see you. they might realize what's going on. we can't have that."

"uh, and why not?" Red demanded. "frisk didn't seem to notice, and you've known her for a while, haven't ya? why can't we tell--"

"did you not pay attention to dad when he talked about the multiverse theory?"

"not really."

Sans groaned and plopped down on the sofa. "they're not supposed to be able to access one another. if they do, it could tear both apart."

Red's inner smartass couldn't let that go. "except in the universe where it doesn--"

"spare me." Sans pulled his hood over his skull. "we can't risk any more people knowing about you. speaking of which."

He sat up with renewed energy.

"you need to stop messing with frisk." he said seriously. "we've gotta send you back as soon as possible, and you have to interact as little as possible with the inhabitants of this universe."

Red sniffed. "ya sure you're not just pissed that you're girlfriend--"

" **s t o p.** " The room suddenly grew a lot darker. " **Listen to me. you need to stop talking to her. you need to stop interacting with her. you need to stop thinking about her. there is nothing in the multiverse that could justify your pursuing someone from a different timeline**."

"nothin', huh?" Red was infuriated. He was being threatened.

 _He_ was being threatened.

" **n o t h i n g.** "

This self-important scienc-ey blue version of him had no idea how important being in this timeline had gotten. Red felt himself shake with anger.

This absolute _idiot_ had no idea who and what he was messing with.

He hadn't wanted to tell this guy, even if he _was_ some wacko version of himself, what had happened--it was kind of a personal thing-- but he was up against the wall.

_Welp. Prepare to have your complaints blown out of the water, idiot._

He leaned over and growled, "i felt a SOUL resonance with her the moment i walked into that bar."


	4. Dating... Start??

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Red is not to be denied, not matter how patient his "mad scientist" double is.
> 
> More blushy interactions and arguments. I'm writing a freakin' soap opera, guys.

Sans sat back down silently. His sockets were darkened and empty, and he seemed to be in a state of shock. 

"...that's impossible." he finally said.

Red scoffed. "says who? you? ya haven't felt what i've felt. sure, it was small at first, but as i talked to her, it got stronger."

"small?" Sans chuckled darkly and shook his head. "it isn't small. it's the fullest feeling in the world."

"how would _you_ know?" Red demanded.

"because i've resonated, too."

Red blinked for a moment, then grinned. "oh. _oh._ i see what's happening."

Sans just stared at him hollowly.

Red pointed at his counterpart. "you. you resonated with her, too. and you were too much of a _wuss_ , or _somethin'_ like that, to tell her."

Sans glared at him, the room growing colder by about ten degrees.

"...and now, you're upset 'cause there's a new challenger in town. the only challenger who could possibly beat ya... yourself." He laughed outright and clapped his hands together. "is that it? you're expression is pretty telling, buddy."

" **red**." 

Sans glared at him, ready to respond, but suddenly felt the energy drain out of him.

He couldn't argue with himself.

So, he simply rubbed his temples and shook his head.

"we need to get you home. she is too important to risk messing with the anomoly of a crossover from an alternate timeline. something could happen to her and she's too important for--"

"i'm not goin' back." Red spat.

There was a moment of silence.

" **excuse me?** "

"ya heard me." Red shrugged, suddenly looking exhausted. "my timeline is awful. everyone's violent, nobody's safe. even paps got corrupted by the mentality. whatever happy timeline this is... whatever happened to release you from the **hell** of the Underground, it ain't happenin' over there."

"i assure you it would." Sans leaned forward. "how many humans have fallen so far?"

"six."

Sans jumped to his feet. "that means the next one is going to be someone important, someone incredibly special to you and everyone else. but especially you. you have a frisk."

"...frisk? **she's** the one who--"

"yes, and she's going to be _your_ SOULmate. trust me, please. you have to go back." Sans grabbed Red's shoulder. "this isn't just about me. this is about everyone being in their proper places and being safe. nothing good can come from screwing with the timelines and universes."

Red snorted, but a bit less violently this time. "...says the guy who purposely tried to rip into the void at the possible expense of his own universe."

"look." Sans sat back down. "it's late. we should get some sleep, ok? you can have my bed, i'll sleep on the couch."

The tense, emotional moment had passed. Both skeletons looked at each other, too tired to argue any longer.

"fine."

"my room's--"

"i know where your room is. you're **me.** this is **my** house." Red snapped, heading up the stairs.

"... oh, yeah." Sans grinned, leaning back onto the couch. "sleep tight."

Red merely grunted in response, slamming the door behind him.

Sans rolled his eyelights. "was i really that moody when i was seventeen?" he muttered to himself, turning over on his side.

 

"... SANS! WHAT'S GOING ON?? WHAT ARE YOU DOING ON THE COUCH??" Papyrus demanded, looming over him. He blinked and turned over.

"uh... i fell asleep." He shot up into a sitting position. "you're back!"

Papyrus had been on a three-day long trip to meet with the owners of the house he wanted to buy on the surface. It had been far too long living in the apartment and he demanded to get a house in a town near Mt. Ebott. So the brothers had temporarily moved back underground for a few months. Didn't have anything to do with the machine in their basement. Nope.

"YES, I AM BACK. SO, WHY DIDN'T YOU GET INTO YOUR BED?" Papyrus raised a bonebrow.

"i was tired." 

"THAT DOESN'T EXPLAIN-- UGH. I THOUGHT MY DAYS OF COMING DOWNSTAIRS AND FINDING YOU ON THE SOFA WERE OVER."

"they are, bro. they are." he pacified. "this is just an ...anomoly."

_Well, that wasn't a lie._

"IT JUST HAPPENED???" Papyrus gained his shifty-eyed, fully bewildered expression.

"'scuse me." He hopped up. "gotta get something out of my room real quick."

"I HAVEN'T EVEN MENTIONED THE FACT THAT IT'S LITERALLY NOON YET!!"

"it's noon?" He checked his wrist.

He wasn't wearing a watch. Papyrus smacked his forehead.

"YES. YOU'D KNOW THAT IF YOU HAD GOTTEN INTO YOUR BED AND BEEN WOKEN UP BY YOUR ALARM!"

"my alarm." He froze.

Red.

Red would be up by now.

Red didn't like listening to him and would have snuck out.

Red was trying to get Frisk's attention and had probably gone to find her on the surface.

His sockets went black. "i've gotta check my room for something."

 

Yup. He was gone.

 

 _If that wannabe mad scientist wants to stop me, he's gonna have to get up a little earlier in the morning._ Red chuckled.

He was heading up to the surface to meet the Frisk. Checking the address book Papyrus kept very neat in the drawer had been easy. Teleporting up to the elevator again and finding himself on the surface--in the _sunlight_ \--had been _incredibly_ easy. And catching the bus over to the town almost as simple.

He could hardly keep himself from staring at the sky the entire time. It was so blue and bright! Boss would've loved to see this!

Forcing the twinge of regret that resurfaced in his SOUL, he focused on his entire reason for wanting to stay here.

Her.

Red actually caught sight of her returning home from a walk when he finally reached her place. He waved awkwardly from the corner at her. Frisk gasped delightedly and rushed over.

"Red!" she exclaimed, embracing him. "I wasn't expecting to see you up here today!"

She smelled clear and fresh and faintly like spearmint. He could hardly breathe. She was so _close._... and they'd hardly gotten to know each other. Didn't she know how dangerous it was to get so close to almost strangers? She could get killed so _easily_ that way.

But no, her world was much different from his. She probably didn't have to worry about that. Well, he wasn't complaining. She was _hugging_ him. _Him._

"funny, huh?" he finally said. She pulled back and stepped away, a bit bashfully, since she clearly sensed the fact that he'd stiffened under her grip.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable." She nervously tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "I just... sorry."

"don't be! don't be." He grinned. "have ya, uh, had lunch yet?"

Frisk tilted her head and smiled. "No, I have not."

"wanna grab something to eat with me?"

"Definitely!" she chirped. "Just let me run inside and get changed first." 

She gestured at her clothes; a simple pair of old jeans and a blue hoodie. He scoffed.

"ya look great, sweetheart. s' not necessary."

She blinked, reddening a little. "Well... Thank you! If you really think so--"

"i know so. you're perfect."

She giggled. "Well. I appreciate your saying so, in any case. Where do you want to go?"

"um..."

Catching his panicked expression, she took over. "Uh, you know, I really like going to... the, uh, Patty's. They have good burgers. You like a good burger, right?"

His sockets lit up again. "yeah. definitely."

"Ok, it's within walking distance, so let's just mosey on over there. Should only take ten minutes."

"... how'd ya know i loved burgers?" he suddenly asked.

She froze for a moment. "Um--well, I just kind of assumed, since you and Sans seem to be pretty similar, and that's always his favorite. Papyrus always says it's so unhealthy for him to eat like that, but he doesn't really care. You seemed to have that kind of vibe about you as well, but I'm sorry for--"

"no, no, sweetheart, don't apologize." he shot her an apologetic smile. "i was jus' wondering, that's all."

 

...

 

"is it just me, or...?"

"Or what?" Frisk asked, soda halfway to her mouth.

"oh, nothin'. forget it." Red shrugged.

She put down the glass. "What is it?" she asked seriously.

"...it just seems kinda like i already knew you. like, from when i first met you, i felt this... connection. it's probably just me, don't worry--"

She was shaking her head, smiling. "No, no, I definitely know what you're talking about."

His SOUL leapt. "ya do?"

"Yes, yeah. I... when I'm around you, my... I mean, yeah. You seem really familiar for some reason, all the time, and I feel like I trust you, and I care about you, already." She blushed. "That's why I hugged you earlier. I'm still sorry about that. It just felt like seeing an old friend. That was what it was like the first time, too. Seeing an old friend for the first time."

That wasn't _exactly_ what he was looking for, but it'd do.

Red grabbed her hand. "i know what you're talkin' about. it's the same with me."

"The same?" She looked a bit ... relieved. "Oh. Oh, good! Yeah, that's good. I mean, I never meant to, like, make you think otherwise, I just--"

"do ya want to do the movies after this?" he interrupted. "i haven't seen a good human movie in theaters in forever."

"Of course!" She seemed even more cheerful than she had been before. "There's some good ones playing right now. I've actually been meaning to check them out earlier, so now's the perfect opportunity!"

"great. let's go."

 

In the theater, they watched a movie about a strange relationship between a girl and a monster. Frisk may have been working hard to improve the not-so-perfect relationships between humans and monsters, but the humans making the movies had decided to help out as well, creating lots of new films about appreciating other races and respect and love between them. It truly was a wonderful time for movie magic, because with the release of actual monsters with magical powers, new discoveries were being made every day with ways to further the industry and make things look even more real and incredible.

Red thought about holding her hand and maybe trying to initiate more contact during the romantic parts, but Frisk seemed so absorbed and fascinated that he had fun just watching her react to things. 

He loved her laugh, and he got to hear it a lot, because she found all the jokes funny. She even started crying twice when the girl was seperated from her beastly lover and told never to contact him again. She also cried at the happy ending.

All in all, it was a wonderful experience, just sitting near her in the dark theater.

_I may be too lazy to persue a relationship normally, but she is a real exception._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry guys! I know it's been a while since I updated this. (I mean... it hasn't been THAT long, but considering the first three chapters of this story went up within a SINGLE WEEK, it's been awhile.)  
> I'm thinking of extending it a bit to have more sweet, sweet, bittersweet interactions between the children. I know I always love reading some Sans vs Sans fights, lol.   
> But anyways, please, _please_ check out thecookieshop.tumblr.com to see my other junk and send me suggestions for other oneshots and fics! I love hearing from y'all _sooooo_ much!!  <3


	5. Birthday Party

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sans and Red arrive at Frisk's birthday party and instantly commence their nonsense. Frisk is a bit fed up with it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so, so sorry this is late. I finished this chapter weeks ago, but I've been so stressed and busy lately that I haven't even gotten the time to post it. I will be trying to finish this entire story before the end of March. Thank you for your patience!

"wake up."

"no."

"wake up, you sack of edgy garbage." Sans prodded the lump of blankets on his air mattress, annoyed. When he didn't have a reason to get up, Red slept even later into the morning than _he_ did.

"rude." Red grumbled, making to move to get up.

"it's a big day. come on."

"...come on, what?"

Sans' expression was devoid of emotion. "frisk's birthday party. It's starting in an hour."

Red jerked awake. "hell, really?"

"yes, really." Sans rubbed his temples. "i'm glad i'm not the only one who temporarily forgot, in any case."

"it's not my fault, i'm _you_. it's _your_ fault." Red rapidly started dusting his jacket off, when he suddenly groaned loudly. " _shit_ , it's all dirty. i've been wearing the same stuff for days."

"what? you wanna look good or something?" Sans looked momentarily smug, but then shook his head. "don't worry. papyrus isn't gonna let you go in that, long-lost cousin or not."

Papyrus hadn't really bought the whole "hey this is a random cousin i've just found so we're taking care of him, how weird is that" story when Red had gotten back from the date with Frisk the previous day. But he bore with it, trusting his brother to tell him the truth at some point. Usually a fair assumption for Papyrus to make.

"what else am i gonna do?" Red was looking angrily down at his messy clothes.

Looking all-suffering, Sans turned and yanked a black sweater out of his own closet. "you take my clothes."

"oh, ok." Red pulled off his giant red fluff hoodie and started putting on the sweater at once.

"huh." Sans noted. "i thought you'd put more of a fight up than that."

"ya kiddin'?" Red grinned. "it's gonna make me look good. 's a good thing ya didn't grow at all in seven years."

Sans's expression darkened for a second before he sighed. "i keep forgetting you're actually a younger version of me." he mumbled. "it makes sense."

"in what way?"

". . . you're totally immature."

He scowled. "watch it. i might put up even _more_ of a fight for your little girlfriend."

"seriously?" Sans flopped down on the air mattress. "haven't you given that up by now? she's too mature for you anyway, isn't she?"

"well, it's not like you've done anything to get 'er, right? she's a free agent." Red flashed a toothy grin and started rummaging in Sans's closet. "got any black jeans? ripped ones?"

Sans started to complain again, but stopped and simply rolled his eyes. 

As soon as Red had gotten back the day before, he'd seemed to realize that Frisk was somebody who could make her own decisions and didn't need to be 'stolen away.' Sans had somehow remembered that as well. Both had simultaneously come to the silent agreement that Frisk would choose who she wanted, regardless of what they thought amongst themselves. So the whole "fighting over the girl" thing wasn't being taken as seriously between them.

It was also possible that neither of them honestly thought they had a real chance.

Either way, there was more of a peace between them. In the least, a truce. 

"good mood, huh?" Red noticed, shaking Sans out of his reverie. "what's gotten into ya all of a sudden?"

"dunno." he shrugged. "i've got a good feeling about today."

Red pulled out a pair of corduroy pants, than dropped them in disgust. "what the hell? are you really a _me_?"

. . . Then again, perhaps it was simply the calm before the storm.

 

They arrived a half hour early with Papyrus to help set up. The party was going to be at Grillby's location on the surface, and it was mostly college friends of Frisk's and the usual monster crowd that would be showing up. 

Unless the press caught wind of it, as usual.

The human media was entirely taken with monsters and every time they had any sort of party, they could usually be trusted to show up. 

The skeletons caught sight of the target-- _nope, that didn't sound right_ \--chatting with Grillby and his niece at the bar. She was wearing a knee-length navy blue silk dress and had her hair up in a messy high bun. She was wearing makeup and earrings, which she normally disliked--"they're just ornaments! They're unnecessary!"--so she looked particularly stunning.

Sans found he was _already_ blushing and completely frozen. In an instant, Red was already at her side, glancing back at him with a knowing smirk.

_Truce, over._

"how's it goin', sweetheart?" Red said, smiling winningly. Frisk jumped.

"Oh! I didn't know you guys would be here early!" She smiled self-consciously and tucked a stray hair behind her ear. "What do you think of the decorations?"

The neat bar was done up with fairy lights and pale pink table covers. All over the walls, there were pink posters covered in photographs of Frisk and the rest of her monster friends. After a second, Red realized that they put together a timeline, beginning with photos taken with the child Frisk in the Underground with her friends. There weren't any earlier ones.

"not as great-looking as you," he responded after a moment.

Frisk reddened. "Th-thank you. Mom--Toriel, I mean--she worked really hard on the dress."

The dress was made by Toriel. No wonder it was so conservative. The most that showed were her shoulders and arms, a bit of her neck, and below her knees.

Surprisingly, Red was delighted with the modesty. Nobody got to see more of her, even on her twenty-first birthday. Pretty weird, but he wasn't complaining. 

Funny how being in love with someone changed your tastes, at least a bit.

Suddenly, Sans was on her other side. "hey, frisk--"

"Hi, Sans!" she chirped.

"you guys really did the place up, huh?"

"Yeah, we worked really hard." Suddenly, her eyes narrowed. "No thanks to _you_ , always busy sleeping or working on--sleeping." she corrected hastily. "I can't imagine what else you would--"

"what?" 

"why is grillbz orange, though?" Red interrupted the confusion.

Creating more confusion. 

Sans glanced at Grillby, then back at Red. "he's made of fire. what... what other color would he be?"

"i dunno, green, blue, somethin' else." he sweated. "it just--if he's a monster made outta fire, shouldn't he be--"

"You've never met Grillby?" Frisk demanded.

"uh-"

"where's your parents?" Sans asked hastily. "we gotta say hi."

Frisk, smiling, grabbed his arm and led him over to where Asgore and Toriel were standing and chatting. Red sat at the bar, staring at Grillby, who stared back at him.

Suddenly realizing they were alone--for the first time since Red came along, Sans's SOUL leapt. 

He finally had the chance to say something. 

. . . He had to say something. _Now._

He stopped walking, jerking her back a bit. They were standing in the middle of the floor.

 

"i like your dress."

Frisk's head snapped back, unsure of if she'd heard him correctly. "Excuse--"

"your dress. it suits you. and your hair." he stuttered. "i mean--your hair looks really good, too, and..." His eyes darted down to her hand, which was still gripping his jacket. 

She was blushing furiously, trying not to smile. "Are you feeling all right, Sans?"

"yes! yeah, i'm feeling great. better than ever. i've missed you."

. . .

"You. . . missed me?"

"when i was in the underground. for six months. i needed to be away from you for a while to think."

"Think about what?" She was breathless.

"i. . . about you. and me. i've always felt this connection to you, and at first i thought it was just because you were determined and could mess with the timeline, but..."

". . .But?"

He met her eyes. "but when you turned seventeen, i started thinking maybe it was more than that."

"More?" she whispered.

"i just needed some time, so i distanced myself. i couldn't handle the emotions, so i had to think about it. but every time i thought i was over it, that i could chalk it up to temporary insanity, i would see you again and it would be unbearable." He was talking much faster than he normally did--the words were pouring out, unheeded, now that he finally had a reason to be without reservation.

" _What_ would be unbearable?" she asked forcefully.

"look, frisk, i--"

Red was suddenly there. "what're ya standin' in the middle of the floor for, freaks? thought you were goin' to talk to the king an' queen."

He looked tense.

"oh, yeah. let's go say hi. you come too, **red.** " Sans said, forcing a grin. He took a hold of Red's sweater and pulled him towards the goats, leaving Frisk standing in the middle of the floor by herself.

She was dazed.

 

_He was about to tell me that he loved me._

_... He was_ definitely _about to tell me that he loved me, I'm not an idiot._

_And then Red-- oh._

_Oh, no._

_That **stupid machine.**_

 

 

The party was in full swing. Well, "full swing" may not be the best way to describe it-- it was extremely calm for a party of this sort, but everyone was still having fun dancing and talking so it didn't really matter that it wasn't wild. The lights in the bar were even dimmer than they usually were, so the pastel fairy lights could shine and cast a pretty glow all over the partygoers.

Sans kept trying to get Frisk on her own, but at her own party with friends and family to constantly be dealing with, it was next to impossible. Giving up temporarily, he plopped down at the bar, not noticing at first who was sitting there.

Red was drinking like a sailor. 

"why--this isn't _your_ twenty-first birthday party." he joked.

"i don't gotta _be_ twenty-one." Red looked annoyed. "i'm a monster."

". . . ok."

They sat there awkwardly. Red took another gulp of his drink. 

"frisk sure was happy to see ya." 

Did he sound _jealous?_

"we've been all but best friends for seven years." Sans snapped.

"uh-huh."

"what's your problem?" he asked suddenly.

"i dunno. what's _your_ problem?" Red shot back.

"my problem is you're over here pouting because frisk isn't cooperating with your stupid flirting--"

"my _stupid flirting_ is making her feel more _desirable_ than anything you've ever done for her--"

"don't try to pretend you've got _her_ best interests at heart, now, because we both know--"

"it's not like you're any less selfish!"

There was silence between them.

"so, what, are you gonna go tell her you love her?" Sans asked, trying to sound sarcastic but only succeeding in sounding weary. "because you're gonna have to explain why you've decided she's the only one for you after knowing her for three days. and i guarantee it's not gonna be good enough for her. she doesn't believe in soulmates."

"she doesn't believe in SOULmates?" Red was astounded. "how?"

"it isn't exactly a common thing. it happens with humans even more rarely than it happens with monsters, apparently." Sans explained. "humans have chalked it up to something different, or ignored it entirely."

"how could ya ignore the call of yer very SOUL?" 

"Strength between SOULs during resonance varies." Frisk suddenly interrupted, sliding in between the skeletons. "Humans have called it 'love at first sight' and the like. Sometimes it's a mere attraction, which demonstrates simply the _capability_ for SOULS to be together. Sometimes, it's stronger, and practically demands the individuals to bend to their passion for one another." She glanced between them, smiling in expectation as if she'd just told a funny joke.

"oh." Red curbed his angry tongue, and chose to instead take another drink from his glass.

"So, how did _this_ topic come up?" Frisk smiled winningly, but Sans knew her well enough to recognize the look in her eyes. 

After a pause, he decided to tell her the truth.

"red has a crush on you, and wants to figure out how to tell you."

Red spat out his drink, fuming. " **ok. look.** "

Frisk reached over and took a hold of Red's arm. "I know you have a crush on me, Red. It's--"

"no. screw this." He shoved his drink over. "this guy has been trying to shut me up, when i know that ever since i first saw you--"

"calm down, i'm not stopping you--" 

"Red, stop, please, just calm--" 

He leaned forward, pulling her towards him, and kissed her.

Instantly, he felt her stiffen, but grab his arms to steady herself, put off-balance by his sudden motion. 

There was a half second when she kissed him back. He was sure of it.

Then, Frisk was lifted up, illuminated by blue magic, and yanked backwards into Sans's lap, as Red was shoved violently off the stool in the opposite direction. Sans wrapped his arms around Frisk protectively, glowering down at Red with the most murderous expression anyone had seen on him in a _long time_.

" **d o n ' t t o u c h h e r.** "

"huh? and why the hell not?" Red started getting up, dusting himself off. "'s not like she's _taken_ or somethin'--"

"BOTH OF YOU STOP!"

They froze. 

Frisk shoved Sans's hands off of herself and jumped off the stool, facing both of them down at once. She quickly glanced around, embarrassed, but there was so much noise at the party that nobody had even noticed the commotion yet. She whirled back on the skeletons with a furious expression. They both shrunk back a bit.

"Red, you need to stop." she said quietly. ". . . You're drunk. But you also don't need to get angry. It's not Sans's fault that. . . ok, well, it probably _is_ his fault, but--"

"how is this my fault??" Sans demanded.

"Look, clearly he's you from an alternate universe, so you don't have to--"

" **what??** "

" _what??_ "

"Shut up!" she hissed. "If we've gotta have this conversation, can it wait until after the party, please? Sans, I'm not sure what you've been telling Red or what your opinion of our relationship is, but you _do not_ have the right to go yanking me around with your magic. And it going to be a civilized conversation, not something from a soap opera. I'm going to talk to my friends now. You are going to be civil to one another while I'm not here. We're going to your basement after this party. All three of us. Red, sober up, please. Drink some coffee or something."

With that, she turned and walked away.

After a beat, the two turned to look at one another with the exact same expression of terrified disbelief.

"she's..."

"yeah."

"drink some coffee."


	6. Determination

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Frisk gets to the bottom of the situation, and after some arm-twisting, both skellies confess their feelings.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> forgive me for the long wait. i hope this chapter begins to make up for it. :(

As soon as the last guest filed out and Frisk stopped waving from the doorway, the smile dropped off her face. She turned to the skeletons with a dark look.

"Ready to go?"

"go where?" Red stuffed his hands in his pockets and ducked his head, immediately realizing that this was a stupid question.

"It's still in your basement, right?" Frisk asked. This was directed at Sans, who flinched.

"uh. yeah."

"Great. Then let's go."

"you sure you don't wanna grab a--" Red attempted.

"Now." Her voice was firm.

"a'ight."

Sans snapped his fingers, and they found themselves at home in the living room.

Frisk flopped down on the sofa, crossing her arms tightly. "So, explain. How'd Red get here?"

"it's actually a _super_ long story."

"yeah, wouldn't ya rather sleep on this whole ordeal before makin' any rash judgements?"

She raised an eyebrow.

"I've been waiting for seven years for any sort of word from you--" She pointed at Sans. "--that you cared about me at all. It took an alternate version of you to light a fire under your ass and get you to try to talk to me. And you--" She turned to Red, who shrunk under her glare. "--really need to grow up a little! I've known you for three days, my _stars_. Do you normally kiss girls without their consent?" she demanded sharply.

". . .sorry." Red's face was sheepish.

"I should hope so." She huffed and blew a stray hair out of her face. "I really should."

"in a nutshell, i was trying to use the portal to access the void." Sans explained. "i accidently snagged _this_ guy from an aternate timeline instead."

"That wasn't very long or complicated to explain."

"yeah, well."

She sighed and rubbed her temples. "Why have you been lying to me and everyone else about who he is?"

"'cause he's unstable. he's not supposed to be here. usually, meeting your alternate self in one of selves' universes would cause both to fade out of existence, as well as both timelines. i mean, theoretically. however, i'm kind of immune to a lot of things at this point." He shrugged. "it might be an issue for somebody like Papyrus, but not me. and probably not you, either, now that i think about it. but still, having somebody else learn about him could be seriously dangerous for not only us two, but the whole timeline.

"All right, that sounds reasonable," she replied, turning to Red. "Now, how do we get you home, back to your timeline?"

"he doesn't wanna go home." his voice was accusatory.

" _Why not_?" she demanded, almost angrily.

"it sucks at home. paps is unhappy and angry. we're trapped underground. and people kill each other." Red explained shortly.

Frisk blinked, suddenly a lot less cold. "Oh."

"also i felt my SOUL resonate with yers right when i first saw ya." he mentioned.

At that, she reddened, but shook her head. "I'm not your SOULmate, Red. We never were. And we aren't compatible."

"i actually think we kinda are."

For a moment, she looked uncertain. "I--no. I don't think we are. I'm _his_ SOULmate, not yours. What you feel is just a. . . _remnant_ of his own SOUL. The part that you technically share, which makes you the same person. But also, um, not. Which is why it isn't as strong with you."

Red's face fell.

Wincing with guilt, she broke eye contact and looked at Sans, who was trying to rapidly morph his quickly spreading grin into an expression of compassion.

"Sans, he _needs_ to go home," she pleaded. "There's a whole timeline over there that needs him. Why haven't you sent him back yet?"

"we need power for the machine." he explained.

"What kind of power?"

"determination."

"Well, it's a good thing I have plenty of that to spare." she quipped, a slight smile lighting up her face for the first time since they'd arrived. "Come on."

 

They headed down the stairs, first Frisk, then Sans, and finally Red, who was lagging behind in the shadows. Sans began setting up the machine and hooking up their power source.

"sure this'll work?" he asked her.

"Hell yeah." Frisk flashed him a quick smile. "But, um, can you answer a question for me real quick?"

"sure thing."

"what _were_ you going to tell me at Grillby's the other day?"

He froze.

"uh, about that. . ."

"You were about to activate this machine, and something you wanted to tell me you wanted to tell me before. . . why _did_ you spend so much time and energy trying to fix this?"

"dad. it was his machine. until we lost him in the void." His smile became hollow. "so, i was the only one who remembered him, cause i worked on this thing with him, and something about it makes me. . . immune? to the timeline changes. i'd have faint memories of each time you changed something."

Her eyes were wide. "Sans, I never--"

"s'fine. you didn't know." He focused on unneccesarily triple-checking the wiring so he didn't have to turn back to her.

"But I should've-- you just wanted to bring your _dad_ back." Tears began forming. Uh-oh. "I'm such an _idiot_."

"nah." He really had no clue how to handle this sudden downpour of emotion.

"I thought you were just holed up in here for your own personal little studies that you cared about more than m--us, your family and friends, and--"

"were. . . were you about to say 'me'?" He was suddenly sitting stock-still.

"What? No! Maybe--I don't know!" She buried her head in her hands. "I could've been helping you out, if I actually tried to figure out what was going on instead of being moody and burying myself in my own work--"

"what? college and embassador. . .-ing, it takes up all your time, that wasn't on you, i should've been the one to--"

"But I could have called! I didn't! I wanted _you_ to, I was so selfish!"

"well i didn't either, i was too scared!"

"Please, scared of _what_?"

" _us_!"

There was an extremely uncomfortably long pause. Red coughed in the corner.

"i, uh, get that you're havin' a moment here, but if you're gonna shove me back into the hellhole i came from, couldja do it quick?"

"Oh, Red." Frisk sobbed, and threw herself upon him.

"ah, shit." Red said before he was tackled onto the floor.

Sans was alarmed for a moment, before it became clear she was just giving Red a huge, messy bear hug. On the floor, where they had happened to land. Red, staring at Sans with huge sockets over the crying girl's shoulder, was overwhelmed by this show of emotions, and had even less of a clue of what to do than Sans did. The original shrugged at him and recieved an impolite hand gesture in response.

"You are going to find the most perfect girl for you," Frisk was saying between sniffs, "and she is going to be so much better than me. . . to be the peacemaker in a world you were describing takes so much more strength than anything I've ever had! She's gonna be kinder, and sweeter, and bet--oh, I'm _not_ making this about me! You are going to be _happy,_ you wonderful funny sarcastic piece of shit, and you are going to _like_ it!!"

"okay." he managed after a minute of speechlessness.

"I am not the only person you'll ever love. Okay??"

"okay."

"Your brother and your friends _need_ you. You are going to be a crucial, important part of saving _everyone_ in the Underground. You are loved and you are necessary."

"yeah, all right. i'll go home." Red mumbled.

"Good," she said, smiling widely, and kissed him.

Sans caught himself gripping the handlebars on the machine-- _didn't she_ just _say??_ \--, but it was hardly a peck, and she was off the extremely dazed Red before he realized anything had happened at all. 

Frisk bounded up, completely red-faced, and coughed. "Okay. Well. Sorry about that. Let's get this show on the road, all right?"

"right." Sans turned back to the machine, shaking his head.

". . .right." Red finished. "are you _sure_ we're not compati--"

" _Red!!_ "

 

"ok, focus your energy into determination."

"Done."

"focus that determination into getting red home."

"On it." She closed her eyes.

"red?"

Sans stretched an arm towards his other self.

"need a hand?" he cracked.

"shut the fuck up," Red jabbed good-naturedly as he clambered into the portal.

 

The last thing he saw was the compassionate smile of the girl, and the somewhat bemused--but forgiving--expression on his double.

Then, everything went dark.

 

The first thing he saw was a mass of white.

Snow.

Snow, and dust, and trees.

He opened his sockets, and coughed. Footsteps crunched on the snow beside him.

"SANS."

He blinked, still disoriented.

"huh?"

"SANS, WHY ARE YOU LYING ON THE GROUND."

"weirdest. . . dream."

"SANS, YOU'RE GOING TO GET YOURSELF FUCKING DUSTED. GET THE HELL UP AND GET BACK TO YOUR POST."

Ah. Right.

He leapt up, quickly brushing off his jacket. "sorry, boss! i was just, ah, takin' a nap."

Papyrus gave him a cold, narrow-eyed stare. "ON THE GROUND."

"yeah." He sweated profusely.

"IN THE SNOW."

"uh-huh." He braced himself for the blows that were sure to come.

They didn't come. "WELL, DON'T DO IT AGAIN," his brother growled. "YOU'RE LUCKY I'M SO MERCIFUL. GET TO YOUR STATION, WHERE IT'S SAFE. AND KEEP A LOOKOUT FOR HUMANS!"

Humans.

"that reminds me! i jus' had the weirdest dream about--"

"SAVE IT FOR LASAGNA NIGHT." Papyrus put up a hand. "I'VE GOT TO RECALIBRATE MY PUZZLES."

"we. . . always have lasagna."

"YES, SAVE IT FOR TONIGHT. YOU'LL PROBABLY HAVE FORGOTTEN IT BY THEN."

A rush of goodwill and affection flooded Red, taking him by surprise. "glad to see you, bro."

". . . ARE YOU FEELING ALL RIGHT, SANS?" he asked, in an almost concerned voice.

"why do you say that, boss?"

Papyrus squinted at him. "I HAVEN'T HEARD A SINGLE SNARKY, DISRESPECTFUL WORD OUT OF YOU FOR A WHOLE CONVERSATION."

"maybe i'm learnin' to appreciate the little things in life." Red spread his arms and offered his brother a wide grin.

"GLAD TO SEE YOU, SANS." Papyrus offered him a crooked smile, and stalked off. "AND REMEMBER NOT TO GET DUSTED, YOU PIECE OF SHIT."

"got it."

Red pulled his jacket hood down, trying to think. _A different him, a human girl. A beautiful human girl. A SOULmate._

A SOULmate.

A faint recollection died in his mind, leaving behind a strong conviction about something to come.

In the distance, he heard a huge, ancient door creak open and slam shut. The echoes shook his part of the woods.

. . . And there she-- _she? His sense of conviction had vanished the moment the thought had entered his mind_ \--was.

 

He quickly began trailing the small thing. A human. A real human! Boss would flip his shit. He had to capture the thing. The _thing._

The thing that was making his SOUL pulse strangely.

Ah, it was just nerves. Nerves, clearly. He walked up behind the human and stuck out his hand, grinning in anticipation of the nasty trick he was about to pull, 

 

and got nailed in the face with a stick.

 

All he could think, staring right at that girl with the choppy brown hair, wielding a stick with a fiery glint in her eye that said she wasn't afraid of him, despite being half his size, was

 

_wow. so this is what it's like to be in love._

 

 

 

 

"You know, you didn't answer my question," Frisk mentioned casually, as the machine booted down.

"what question was that?"

"What _were_ you about to say to me, what you wanted to say to me before the world got torn in two from the void?"

"oh. that. you know, it's been a long night and i think both of us could use some--"

" _Seriously_?" she asked, disbelieving.

"ok, yeah. that's fair." he conceded, withering instantly, "but just consider, getting the most funny, smart, attractive, perfect person imaginable as your SOULmate? how would _you_ have dealt with it?"

She gave him a pointed look.

"Sans, that is _exactly_ what happened to me."

"what? no, i was talking about--oh." He wasn't much one for blushing, but in that unexpected moment, his face went completely blue.

"If you aren't interested in having a relationship with me, just tell me, okay?" She bit her lip, fighting back tears. "But I think you should know that I just sent another version of you--who actually _was_ interested--back to where he came from for his own happiness. And for hers. So. It's pretty clear how I feel about _you._ And you should think carefully about what you say to--"

"can I take you to dinner?"

"What?" She sniffled.

"a date, a real one. please? i'm sorry for hiding from you for so long and you have every right to be furious at me. but if you still have an ounce of attraction to me, trust me when i say that i am completely and wholeheartedly in love with _you_ and i have been for years and yeah words are coming out of my mouth jeez i dunno what i was th--"

"We'd better make this dinner count, then."

"what?" He turned to see her sitting stock still with her hands laced so tightly together her knuckles were white. 

"To make up for the years we've both been stalling."

He breathed. "really?"

"I love you. And I've missed you a lot. And I'm _never, ever_ going to give you up and replace you with a different, cooler version of you. Ever." Her watery dark red eyes turned on him fiercely as her mouth curved into a thin smile. "So get that out of your head. He was never any competition for you. I _love_ you, Sans."

Sans was speechless. Magical blue tears began forming in his sockets, and he reached to take Frisk's hand in his, squeezing it tightly. She smiled brightly through her own tears, and sniffled a bit.

The silence in which they sat was perfect. He raised his eyes to meet hers, and slowly opened his mouth to respond.

 

"you said 'i'm never gonna give you up' unironically."

"Oh, that is it, we're breaking up." She dropped his hand.

"we were dating??"

"What do you _think,_ fucker? You just asked me out and I said yes!"

"oh, jeez, please tell me you're kidding, i'm--"

"Of _course_ I'm kidding, what kind of moron--!"

"can i kiss you, _please_ , because i've--"

"No."

Frisk leaned forward and pressed her lips against his teeth for a few moments. Pulling back, she cracked a smile--a real, genuine smile--and laughed. He managed a stupid chuckle in response, but his face was too hot for him to form intelligent words.

"That's your punishment for waiting so long." She sat back on her heels and smiled proudly at her handiwork.

"hey," he said, recovering, "if that's your idea of a punishment, you can punish me all you--"

"Oh, shut up!" she hissed, reddening madly. "Now you've made it _weird_!"

 

 

 

~End


End file.
